Pakistan military officials are denying claims by the country's
disgraced nuclear scientist that the army and President Pervez
Musharraf sent centrifuges to North Korea.
The head of the agency handling Pakistan's nuclear arsenal (Strategic Planning Division), Lieutenant General Khalid Kidwai told reporters today the allegations are absolutely false.
Kidwai was reacting to a Friday interview disgraced scientist Abdul
Qadeer Khan gave to the Associated Press in which the nuclear scientist
said the army had complete knowledge of a shipment of nuclear
centrifuges sent to North Korea in 2000. Khan also alleged that
President Musharraf must have given his consent.
Speaking later to media, Khan backed off from his Associated Press account, saying the news agency had misinterpreted his words.
The nuclear scientist has been under house arrest in Pakistan since he
confessed in 2004 to passing nuclear secrets to Iran, North Korea and
Libya.
In recent interviews, Khan has said he was forced to make the
confession, and that the proliferation charges against him are
baseless. He told VOA that Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf went
after him because of pressure from the U.S.